Bankruptcy Indiana

In my line of work, which is advising folks who need debt help, I've learned that life can be brutal, but, (and this may be surprising to some people), bankruptcy need not be. I figure, who better to debunk all the myths about bankruptcy law but a group of Indiana bankruptcy attorneys with years and years of experience and tens of thousands of families helped?

Being a guy who still values old-fashioned client service but who tries to keep up with technology, I decided blogs would be just one more very cool way to get the message out to people in Indiana who need to hear it. I want my blog to reach people in Indiana who know they need to do something about their debt situation. There are folks out there who need to know more about what bankruptcy is and what it isn't. I want to reach people who have too many bills to pay, bill collectors bothering them, people who need to know the answer to the question, "So what am I going to do about it?" I want my blog to reach people who might be facing foreclosure on their home. I want my blog to help those folks learn that sometimes declaring individual bankruptcy is the best course of action, and that sometimes declaring bankruptcy might not be such a great idea.

I figure that a blog is an informal, very personal way for me and the other bankruptcy attorneys who work with me to deliver information and invite feedback in the form of comments and questions.

Personally, I'm hoping that I'll be able to get across some of my ideas about how clients who need debt help should expect to be treated, and how important I know it is to just listen to people when they need to talk about their business or their family or their health problems. So, I'm going to be here blogging, debunking, explaining, and helping. I hope you'll be here, too...

Back in March of this year, the Chapter 11 bankruptcy of Hoosier Park in Anderson was the featured story in my Bankruptcy in Indiana article. I explained that, even though I've provided Indiana bankruptcy help to many small businesses, I use news stories about bigger companies to illustrate how the new bankruptcy laws in Indiana work. In addition, with one of the four Zuckerberg bankruptcy law offices located in Anderson, I was especially interested in the bankruptcy of the Anderson-based company.

Centaur, LLC, the parent company of Hoosier Park casino and horsetrack, filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy, planning to reorganize the company and start over financially. As a small business bankruptcy Indiana lawyer, I was careful to explain to readers and clients that what that meant was that the company and its lenders had agreed to work together to keep the business going and to pay debts over time, treating all parties to the Chapter 11 bankruptcy in Indiana as fairly as possible.

Centaur's reorganization plan has two parts:

• Stretch out debt repayment  by issuing bonds and warrants
   
• Sell properties at auction (a hotel it owns west of Denver and a planned horsetrack near Pittsburg)

Centaur is asking the bankruptcy court to approve its plan and hopes to emerge from bankruptcy in March of next year.

The attorneys in Indiana who are my colleagues in the Zuckerberg bankruptcy law offices in Anderson and I have been following the Centaur story closely. We all agree that the Centaur bankruptcy is not what Indiana investors had in mind when they committed money to Hoosier Park, in some ways it sets a good example for small business owners.  Centaur heeded the warning signs and took the necessary, if difficult, actions in time to save their company.

After almost 25 years serving as a small business bankruptcy attorney in Indiana, I know. Bankruptcy is a very bitter pill for any business owners to swallow!  As I see the Mark Zuckerberg mission, though, it's to help business owners evaluate all available options and make the decision that's best for them and for their business when it comes to deciding whether to file bankruptcy in Indiana!

As I've emphasized often before in Bankruptcy in Indiana, it's really all about jobs. Whether it's qualifying to file under Chapter 13 bankruptcy law in Indiana, or whether it's getting back on one's financial feet after filing bankruptcy Chapter 7 in Indiana, it comes down to having income to keep the bills paid. That's why it's been so important for me, as a debt consolidation lawyer, to keep my clients and readers updated on the employment situation in our state.

• Ports, I'm learning, are helping a lot.  A new study I read about in Inside Indiana Business suggests that Indiana's three ports contribute $5.4 billion to Indiana's economy each year, accounting for more than 43,500 jobs. To me that says clients will have a better chance to successfully emerge from personal bankruptcy in Indiana.
  
   
• Solar panels are helping, too. Fort Recovery Construction & Equipment is expanding its SolarAg division, creating up to 120 new jobs in the next three years. To me that means clients who've filed small business banakruptcy in Indiana will have a better chance at getting business back on its feet.
   
• Green is good. The Indiana Department of Environmental Management is awarding $500,000 in grants to create hundreds of new "green" jobs. With the "ripple effect" that can have, that could help stop foreclosure in many cases, and help clients make a fresh financial start after filing individual bankruptcy in Indiana.
   
• Parking helps.  Dallas-based ACS will operate Indianapolis' public parking system, and that will create 200 new jobs, according to Mayor Greg Ballard.

While the four Mark Zuckerberg bankruptcy law offices are in Indiana's Southern District, including the Columbus bankruptcy lawyers who help serve the entire southern part of the state, I'm always interested in news from every part of the state. As an attorney who's provided Indiana bankruptcy help to tens of thousands of individuals and families, including those filing small business bankruptcy in Indiana, I know how the economy in one part of the state, and even the economy of neighboring states, affects jobs in the Southern District.

As I write this, I also realize that there are two important unknowns when it comes to jobs in Indiana: One has to do with the GM stamping plant in Indianapolis and whether it will remain open, and the second has to do with Navistar phasing down operations in Ft. Wayne. As an Indianapolis bankruptcy attorney, I know many, many jobs are dependent on the outcomes in these two situations. All the Indiana bankruptcy lawyers who are my colleagues are on the alert for news about these two companies.

The overall employment picture is showing signs of recovery; Indiana added 13,000 private sector jobs in July. Mark Everson of the Indiana Department of Workforce Development reported that Hoosiers make up 2% of the U.S, population, yet we captured 9% of all new jobs in the nation in July. To me, what that says is fewer individuals will need payday loan debt help.

Right now, I can tell by the requests I'm getting for payday loan debt help, student loan debt help, and help with mortgage modifications, that we're far, far, from being "out of the woods" when it comes to jobs in Indiana. Still, hopeful employment reports like these cheer me because I know these new jobs will make it possible for more people to make a fresh financial start after emerging from bankruptcy in Indiana! 

 Last week in Bankruptcy in Indiana I shared some thoughts from a new book by an Indiana author called Failure; the Secret to Success, explaining that one of my missions as a debt consolidation lawyer offering bankruptcy services in Indiana is to help debtors focus on the future rather than on their own past failures.

In order to provide the latest Indiana bankruptcy information to clients and readers, I read a lot - newspapers, professional journals, books websites, and even blogs. The interesting thing is that, a day or two after I finished reading the Robby Slaughter book on failure that I mentioned earlier, I found an article from Inc. Magazine, written 12 years ago, with almost the same name as the Slaughter book.. This article tells the story of Jeff Schwartz, whose business, Remarkable Moments, had failed, and it brings out the idea that sometimes a business failure teaches lessons that lead to future success.

As a lawyer for small business bankruptcy in Indiana,  I really related to the opening paragraph of the Inc. article:  "There are three things to know about failure:

1. It happens.
    
2. It can be destructive in ways you've never imagined.
    
3. Believe it or not, there's a right way to do it.
   
   The point of the article is that Jeff Schwartz should have pulled the plug on his business long ago.  He should have dealt with the realities before he had gone three years without a salary, before he'd burned through all his personal savings, before his wife quit the PTA and community activities because of the business' demands, before he raided his children's college funds."

Every one of the Columbus bankruptcy lawyers who works in the Zuckerberg bankruptcy law offices has heard stories like this.  Every one of the good bankruptcy attorneys in Indiana who are my colleagues in Anderson, Bloomington, and Indianapolis has  worked with individuals and small business owners who waited too long to file bankruptcy in Indiana, and who lost assets they might have kept had they sought legal advice earlier in the game.

Having helped write the exemptions portion of the new bankruptcy laws of Indiana, I find it particularly sad when I find that, in order to put off facing bankruptcy, small business owners have gone into their retirement plan assets (which are exempt from creditors' claims in bankruptcy in Indiana), and spent money they might have preserved for their family and for their own support in later years.

Whether it comes to filing personal bankruptcy under bankruptcy Chapter 7 in Indiana, Chapter 13 bankruptcy law in Indiana, or whether we're talking about small business bankruptcy in Indiana, I have to agree with two of the three Inc. Magazine statements about failure:

1. Bankruptcy happens.
    
2. Believe it or not, there's a right way to do it.

As far as the remaining statement about failure being destructive, I believe the bankruptcy process - and in particular the process of successfully emerging from bankruptcy can be constructive in ways most people haven't imagined!
 

"My job is to serve as a human shield." is one of the 12 things good bosses believe, according to Robert Sutton as quoted in the Harvard Business Review. Sutton goes on to explain what he means. Good bosses protect their people "from external intrusions, distractions, and idiocy of every type".

As I read the article, I couldn't help thinking that Mark Zuckerberg's job is to serve as a human shield! In fact, I wondered if Sutton, Professor of Management Science and Engineering at Stanford University, wasn't referring to all the good bankruptcy attorneys in Indiana.   It's certainly true that a good portion of our effort in Indiana bankruptcy law goes towards helping clients who have turned to us for Indiana bankruptcy help overcome distractions and focus on a plan of action for the future.

Is bankruptcy Chapter 7 in Indiana the right decision?  Would filing under Chapter 13 bankruptcy laws be more appropriate to the situatioin? Let's focus on getting all the information together to help in the decision process. Let's measure the problem, but focus on the solution, I urge.

Bill Gross, founder of the world's largest bond fund, said a wise thing: "Loss of confidence is perhaps the most dangerous thing. A patient with hope, most doctors will agree, has a better chance of recovery." As I help clients prepare to file individual bankruptcy in Indiana, one of the primary ways I need to serve as a "human shield" is to move my clients' minds away from self-blame and towards hope for the future.. 

I think any debt consolidation lawyer would agree with my message to debtors seeking Indiana bankruptcy help: "Don't blame yourself. Don't blame others in your family. Use the safety net provided by the new bankruptcy laws of Indiana to buy time to plan for the future. Spend your emotional energies fofocused on the chance for the fresh financial start that filing personal bankruptcy in Indiana has to offer."

Do you need help to stop foreclosure? Do you need help understanding how personal bankruptcy in Indiana works?  You're certainly not alone, I explain to debtors who turn to me for help. I have worked with literally tens of thousands of individuals, I explain.  I understand you never thought you'd be here, I say, but here you are. Let the new bankruptcy laws in Indiana go to work to help you make a fresh start.

Meanwhile, I say, let's get your mind off the distractions and get you ready to make good, informed decisions about your financial future.

• payday lenders
• high-fee debt settlement agencies
• credit repair and foreclosure prevention services.

Whether or not filing individual bankruptcy in Indiana is the recommended course of action in any one person's case, or whether small business bankruptcy in Indiana should be filed as well, our mission is to help debtors understand their options and be shielded from distractions of bill collectors' calls and letters.

Looking back on all the many years I have worked alongside my colleagues as a debt consolidation lawyer, and on all the lectures I've given for ongoing education to other bankruptcy attorneys in Indiana, I cannot think of a better description for the work we do than "human shields"!

As a longtime bankruptcy attorney and debt consolidation lawyer in Indiana, I'm keenly aware of the tie-in between bankruptcy and jobs.  Every one of the Anderson, Indianapolis, Bloomington, and Columbus bankruptcy lawyers who work in the Mark Zuckerberg bankruptcy law offices is seeing people who need help because they lost jobs.  Income from jobs - or lack of it -  is high on the list of discussion topics when we're talking to clients about filing bankruptcy in Indiana, that's for sure.

Last week, though, a statistic was released by the Equal Employment Opportunities Commission that showed me that, for some people, losing a job can be even more tragic than for others.  According to USA Today, "More people with disabilities filed charges of discrimination against their employers last year than at any time in the 20-year history of the Americans With Disabilities Act."

Nicholas LaRocca of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society thinks people with disabilities may be seen as less productive, and, in a recession, are more likely to be let go. That means an increase in the number of people who need to file individual bankruptcy in Indiana, and increase in people needing payday loan debt help, student loan debt help, and even help with mortgage modification.

When it comes to qualifying under Chapter 13 bankruptcy law in Indiana, debtors must show they have enough income to make debt repayments under a three to five year plan.  At least if Mr. LaRocca's impression is correct, finding new work might be doubly hard for disabled debtors. Even under Chapter 7 bankruptcy in Indiana, debtors need income in order to emerge from bankruptcy and get back to keeping their bills paid. While filing personal bankruptcy in Indiana can provide relief from creditors, income from jobs is a key ingredient if a new financial start is to be the result.

As I read this USA Today article, I was reminded that disabled individuals that were downsized obviously were able to work, which means they would probably not qualify for social security disability payments.  What's more, I realized (as a seasoned Indiana lawyer for bankruptcy used to dealing with debt problems), in many cases, the disabled need to pay for medical equipment and supplies.  Many are not in a position to purchase COBRA health insurance.

In my Bankruptcy in Indiana articles, I've often stressed how crucial it is to seek legal advice at the first sign of financial difficulty.  For all the reasons listed above, that goes double for disabled workers who are laid off.  The new bankruptcy laws of Indiana are there to provide a safety net, and it's important for laid off workers to be proactive about using that safety net. 

While I feel  doubly sad for the disabled who've been dealt a "double whammy" by losing their jobs, I feel doubly proud to serve in the profession of Indiana bankruptcy law whose mission it is to provide help and hope to debtors.

Back almost three years ago, one of the good bankruptcy attorneys in the Indiana Zuckerberg bankruptcy law office made a remark that I quoted in Bankruptcy in Indiana. That remark is truer today than ever: "No one can work in this field of bankruptcy law," she said, "without thinking every day, 'There, but for the grace of God, go I.'"

In fact, as a debt consolidation lawyer offering bankruptcy services in Indiana for more than twenty years, one of my missions is to help Indiana bankruptcy clients focus on the future rather than on their own past failures.  Two of the top 15 myths about bankruptcy in Indiana have to do with failure:

• Filing bankruptcy means you're a bad person
   
• Only deadbeats file bankruptcy

"Failure often educates us by showing us what must be done," says Slaughter. I discussed the book with my colleagues the Columbus bankruptcy lawyers who work in the Zuckerberg bankruptcy law offices.  We agreed that, if clients who file under Chapter 13 bankruptcy laws in Indiana are to  successfully emerge from that bankruptcy after three to five years of making debt repayments, they need to have learned how to operate their finances using better money management principles.  The "failure" will indeed have provided an opportunity for growth, and filing bankruptcy in Indiana will turn out to offer them a fresh financial start.

One of the most important aspects of my work providing Indiana bankruptcy help is "forward focus".  One of my favorite chapters in the book was about Abraham Lincoln.  Lincoln had lost a fiancé and three of his children to death, had a failed business, and had trouble finding a job.  In fact Abe Lincoln had his possessions seized as part of frontier bankruptcy proceedings! Despite (Slaughter suggests it's because of ) all these failures, Lincoln went on to become an American hero and president of our nation.

Bankruptcy, as I've written so often in these Bankruptcy in Indiana articles, is not an end, but a beginning.  If it's a failure at all, bankruptcy can be a bridge to a future of success.

Every story of bankruptcy in Indiana has a chapter about jobs and a chapter about health, and some have both. 

To hear the Columbus bankruptcy lawyers and the attorneys in the Anderson, Bloomington, and Indianapolis Zuckerberg bankruptcy law offices tell it, a good number of the people who seek our help filing for protection under the new bankruptcy laws of Indiana just want harassing medical collections calls to stop!  Those people may have been victims of a job layoff and lost their insurance coverage, but the collection agencies' efforts can be unrelenting.  Medical bills are one of the top three causes of bankruptcy, and are making up an even bigger share in recent years.

As a debt consolidation lawyer offering bankruptcy services in Indiana, I'm all too aware of the role rising medical costs are playing in bankruptcy.  Meanwhile, of course, those costs continue to rise even more.

I just finished reading a fascinating book named Five Patients, written by Michael Crichton (author of Jurassic Park). This book, a history of hospital medicine in the U.S., was written back in 1970, forty years ago!  Change the numbers, though, and it could be about our situation today! Here are some quotes along with my comments:

"The cost of hospitalization has skyrocketed.  The average patient today (1970) pays per hour what the average patient paid per day in 1925!"

How that relates to personal bankruptcy in Indiana: Medical debt is unsecured debt, dischargeable through bankruptcy.  In fact, hospital costs are one of the main forms of debt for which Hoosiers seek bankruptcy relief. 

"Hospitalization costs have increased much more rapidly than other goods and services in the economy."

As a lawyer for individual bankruptcy in Indiana (as well as for small business bankruptcy in Indiana), I'm continually seeing the effects of this medical cost spiral.  The profitability of small businesses and their ability to hire is impacted.

Michael Crichton writes about five patients, using their stories to illustrate the development of medicine as practiced in U.S. hospitals.  I couldn't help thinking that, in the four Zuckerberg bankruptcy law offices, we could find upwards of five thousand stories about clients to whom we've offered Indiana bankruptcy help because of crippling medical costs!.
 

For someone who never wanted to be a real estate lawyer, I've needed to know an awful lot about real estate.  That has been the case more than ever in the most recent part of the close to 25 years I've served as a debt consolidation lawyer offering bankruptcy services in Indiana.  Falling real estate prices have been the subject of headlines and have caused problems for bankruptcy clients in Indiana who need my help to stop foreclosure.

As I've written in many earlier Bankruptcy in Indiana articles, under the new bankruptcy laws of Indiana, filing Chapter 13 bankruptcy can often help stop foreclosure when second mortgages are discharged by the bankruptcy court.  However, first mortgage debt is not dischargeable in bankruptcy, so for clients filing bankruptcy Chapter 7 in Indiana, the process will not help them stop foreclosure.

The current administration has been offering cash incentives to mortgage services companies who agree to help homeowners remain in their homes.  I, along with the Anderson, Bloomington, Indianapolis, and Columbus bankruptcy lawyers who work in the Zuckerberg bankruptcy law offices have been called upon to help stop foreclosures by helping our clients prepared the mortgage modification paperwork so they can try to qualify for these mortgage lender programs.

According to the Indianapolis Star, "nearly $83 million in Federal funds is available to help unemployed Hoosiers avoid foreclosure on their homes. And now, there's a new foreclosure prevention program, called Hardest Hit Fund, which just this month was extended to 17 states, including Indiana.  A related program, the Emergency Homeowners Loan Program, administered through HUD, provides zero interest loans of up to $50,000 for qualified unemployed - or underemployed - people. Every one of the good bankruptcy attorneys in Indiana who works with me stays on constant alert for new programs coming out to help stop foreclosure.

Meanwhile, as one of only a dozen Certified Consumer Bankruptcy Specialists in our state, there are various ways I am able to be of help (along with the other Indiana bankruptcy attorneys in the four Mark Zuckerberg bankruptcy law offices:

• I help by analyzing a homeowner's financial situation
   
• I am used to  having skilled property appraisals run
   
• As a bankruptcy attorney in Indiana, preparing debt-income ratios for the applications for help is an area of expertise for me
   
• To achieve mortgage modification, I and my colleagues help by negotiating various mortgage compromises on behalf of clients.

Sheriffs' sales have become a bigger and bigger part of the stories shared by clients who turn to me for Indiana bankruptcy help. Indiana has a three-month waiting period before a sheriff's sale can be triggered, with the only exception being residential real estate that has been abandoned.

As part of my mission to offer bankruptcy information in Indiana to my readers and clients, (as wekk as to the attorneys around the state of Indiana whom I help educate on the new bankruptcy laws in Indiana), it's important for me to include real estate matters in the mix. No getting away from it - nowadays, a bankruptcy attorney in Indiana needs to know a lot about real estate!

In my Bankruptcy in Indiana articles, the "ripple effect" is a term I've often used to explain how, in our economy, everything is inter-related.  When a large company closes its doors or lays off workers, the effect "ripples" out to suppliers and to small stores and service businesses all over the state.

That's why, as a debt consolidation lawyer who offers bankruptcy services in Indiana's southern district, I am still always alert for news from the northern part of our state.  I was happy to learn two pieces of news:

• Biomet, the orthopedics manufacturer in Warsaw, plans to add 278 jobs over the next two years.
   
• U.S. Steel is moving forward with a $220 million project in Gary which will create approximately 500 temporary construction jobs. 

With Zuckerberg bankruptcy law offices in 38 counties, tracking Indiana employment statistics has become a mission for me and my colleagues the Anderson, Bloomington, Indianapolis, and Columbus bankruptcy lawyers.  All of us closely follow unemployment insurance claim statistics as well, and help our Indiana bankruptcy clients use the resources provided by the Indiana Department of Workforce Development.

Unemployment in Indiana has continued to hover around 10%, with job loss continuing to be one of the three leading causes of bankruptcy in Indiana along with divorce and uninsured medical costs.

In providing bankruptcy information in Indiana, I always emphasize the fact that our state pays unemployment benefits for a maximum 26 weeks.  With federal extensions (part of the administration's overall stimulus plan), Hoosiers can receive benefits for a total of almost two years.

That's not as simple as it sounds, though, because, as a worker reaches the end of one extension, he or she can't move to another until Congress has approved the next extension.

Related to all this, I fnd, is the fact that many more people need my help stopping foreclosure on their homes in addition to bankruptcy services in Indiana.  Bottom line - it's still all about jobs!

A bankruptcy attorney in Indiana - actually anybody in Indiana - has to care about the future of GM.  And actually, as a debt consolidation lawyer offering bankruptcy services in Indiana, I've been sharing news about the GM bankruptcy with my clients and Bankruptcy in Indiana readers from the beginning.

A few weeks ago, I wrote these words: "Tracking Indiana employment statistics is like riding an emotional roller coaster."  Well, as I was telling some colleagues who are bankruptcy lawyers in Columbus, the GM saga has been like a roller coaster and then some, and the drama continues…..

The reason the fate of the GM stamping plant is such an item of interest for all the Anderson, Bloomington, Indianapolis and Columbus bankruptcy lawyers who work in the Zuckerberg bankruptcy law offices can be summed up in one word - jobs! As I've repeated so often, successful emergence from bankruptcy in Indiana is absolutely dependent on the availability of well-paid jobs.

As of this writing, here's where things stand:

• GM is negotiating the sale of its Indianapolis stamping plant to JD Norman Industries.
   
• If the sale should fall through, GM plans to close the Indiana operation and move the machinery to Michigan and Ohio.

What's the significance of all this?

• One of the JD Norman conditions for purchase is that union workers agree to lower wages.  The buyer says the plan could employ 2,000 at the lower wage (650 work there now).
   
• Indiana has lost 200,000 manufacturing jobs over the past ten years.
   
• GM Indianapolis is one of the city's largest taxpayers
   
• The debate within the union continues: As one GM worker put it, better having a job making less money than no job making no money!

On behalf of those emerging from bankruptcy in Indiana, I can't help but agree.  Those who've filed bankruptcy Chapter 7 in Indiana want their chance at a fresh financial start.  It take jobs for that to happen.

Then, of course, those who filed under Chapter 13 bankruptcy law in Indiana need income to keep up with their court-supervised debt repayment plans.

All the good bankruptcy attorneys in Indiana who work with me are rooting for GM stamping plant jobs to remain right here in Indiana!

On all the TV crime shows, we hear the cops say to the perps, "You have the right to remain silent…" As a longtime debt consolidation lawyer and Indiana bankruptcy attorney, though, I have to tell you: when it comes to the bankruptcy laws in Indiana, you really don't have the right to remain silent!

In providing Indiana bankruptcy information, I like to use real court cases to illustrate different aspects of how bankruptcy in Indiana works.  Here's what happened in one Texas case:

• The debtor, T. was a partner in a law firm.  Another partner had committed fraud, and, because the firm was a partnership, T. was liable for a share of the debt (even though he'd done nothing wrong).
   
• T. filed bankruptcy.
   
• A debate arose within the jury about what constitutes fraud.  Does fraud occur only when a party makes a misrepresentation (meaning tells an untruth), or can fraud occur when a party fails to mention a material fact?

As an Indiana lawyer for bankruptcy, I was especially interested in the court's final ruling on this case.  The courts overwhelmingly decided that a debtor's silence regarding a material fact is the same as telling a lie.

This principle comes into play all the time in my work.  In fact, it's one of the reasons I believe that filing bankruptcy in Indiana is NOT a do-it-yourself job.  What I find is that clients who have no intention of committing fraud just do not understand what needs to be included in the answers to some of the questions on the bankruptcy paperwork that must be submitted to the court.  Often, the clients don't know how to gather the needed information.  Without meaning to, then, clients who don't seek professional Indiana bankruptcy help leave out material information. You now know that's as bad as actually falsifying the information.

In a worst-case scenario, a bankruptcy petition can be totally denied by the court, all because of an unintentional omission of material information. There is actually the possibility of criminal recrimitaion as well!  When it comes to the bankruptcy laws of Indiana, silence is certainly not golden!

 

As a debt consolidation lawyer and Indiana lawyer for bankruptcy, I wear quite a number of different hats in the course of my work.  Almost always, though, helping clients file personal bankruptcy in Indiana comes around to preparing for "meetings" and "tests".

When I say "meetings, I mean the creditors' meeting which takes place within 20 to 40 days of the time a bankruptcy in Indiana is filed.  The meeting is presided over by a trustee appointed by the bankruptcy court, either in an office or a room in the courthouse.  All the creditors to whom the debtor owes money are invited. (In reality, it's rare for creditors to actually show up at the meeting.)  You attend this meeting along with your Indiana bankruptcy attorney.  The whole idea is to give the creditors a chance to ask questions about the bankruptcy paperwork you've turned in.  While the creditors may or may not choose to attend the meeting, the debtor must attend.

Any discussion about what debtors can reasonably be expected to pay towards their debt comes down to the "test", meaning the Indiana means test. This is the measure the bankruptcy court uses to determine of someone's eligible to file bankruptcy in Indiana, and to decide if Chapter 7 bankruptcy is available to them, or whether they need to file under Chapter 13 bankruptcy law in Indiana. 

As an Indiana lawyer for bankruptcy, then, I'm always working with the numbers.  Where do the number standards come from?  First of all, they are national standards, sometimes adjusted for regional differences, and they originate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Consumer Expenditure Survey.  Periodically, of course, those numbers are adjusted for inflation. The numbers are stated in terms of number of people in the family.  There are specific numbers for a one-person household, a two, a three, or a four-person household, and then an amount to be added for each additional person over four.

You might say that one of the main tasks that I and my colleagues in the four Mark Zuckerberg bankruptcy law offices have in the course of our work is numbers.  We help gather numbers, we need to know the current laws concerning those numbers, and then, using the numbers, we prepare the paperwork which categorizes and analyzes those numbers for each client.  In fact, one of the Columbus bankruptcy lawyers from my office there pointed out that, even if clients aren't filing bankruptcy in Indiana, and we're negotiating with their mortgage companies to help stop foreclosure, or maybe we're offering payday loan help, it's still all in the numbers.

After more than two decades of being an Indianapolis bankruptcy attorney, I agree and disagree.  Yes, "The Meeting "and "The Test" involve numbers.  All of our work involves numbers.  What's it's really all about, for me, though is not the numbers, but the people.  Our greatest satisfaction comes from turning what look like negative numbers into a positive - the chance for a fresh financial start for real people in Indiana!

Even though I'm an Indiana lawyer for bankruptcy, it often happens that clients come to talk with me who are far from certain that filing bankruptcy in Indiana is the best thing for them.  Sometimes, people just want my advice as a debt consolidation lawyer.  Or perhaps they want my help to stop foreclosure on their home.

Needless to say, the subject of just how bankruptcy in Indiana works comes up in the discussion, and invariably that comes around to the Indiana means test.  The means test is a standard by which the court determines if someone is eligible to file bankruptcy in Indiana, and which type of bankruptcy they qualify for.

As part of providing Indiana bankruptcy information, I explain that, if your income is less than the median income earned by Indiana residents during the last six months, you could probably qualify to file either Chapter 7 bankruptcy, or you could file under the new Chapter 13 bankruptcy laws of Indiana.  If your income is less than the median, on the other hand, Chapter 13 could be your only option.

Once I've explained the means test to my clients, my next step as a bankruptcy attorney in Indiana is to explain that federal law actually sets standards for each kind of expense.  There are allowable amounts that people who file bankruptcy in Indiana are allowed to keep for their own use, to support themselves and their families, before they're expected to make debt repayments.  For example, one reader asked about his family of six, and was told that the allowance would be around $1900 a month for food, housekeeping supplies, apparel and services, personal care products and services, and miscellaneous.

Well, there's an allowance for car expenses as well, which include lease payments or car payments, gasoline, and maintenance.  In the Midwest region, for example, the monthly vehicle allowance is $210 for one car, $420 for two.

One of the Columbus bankruptcy lawyers from the Zuckerberg bankruptcy law offices there brought an interesting case to my attention.  In this court case, debtors had filed Chapter 13 bankruptcy and had claimed a vehicle allowance as part of their allowable expenses.  The thing was, though, they both owned their cars free and clear.  The question before the court, then, was - could they still claim the car expense allowance and use the money for other expenses?

The court's answer was, very simply "yes".  These two debtors had no monthly car loan to pay or lease obligation, either prior to filing bankruptcy or now, but they were allowed to claim an allowance for avehicle expense anyway!

Goes back to what I was saying yesterday - all's fair in bankruptcy!
 

It's true, and it always has been - the attempt to treat all parties fairly under bankruptcy law. I've watched the evolution of the bankruptcy laws of Indiana over the almost 25 years I've been a debt consolidation lawyer.  In fact, I helped write a portion of the new bankruptcy laws of Indiana.  The guiding principle behind federal bankruptcy law as well as Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 bankruptcy law in Indiana, is fairness, and the same is true of small business bankruptcy law in Indiana.

Does everybody win, then, in bankruptcy? Of course not. The bankruptcy court system is designed as a safety net to be used when honest debtors become so overwhelmed by negative circumstances beyond their control, that they need to be given the chance for a fresh financial start.

The Indiana lawyers for bankruptcy who wok in the Zuckerberg bankruptcy law offices in Anderson, Bloomington, and Indianapolis, along with the Columbus bankruptcy lawyers in my offices there all deal in personal bankruptcy in Indiana.  In my case, I offer small business bankruptcy help along with personal bankruptcy help in Indiana.  None of us handles big corporations who file bankruptcy.

Still, a good example of fairness can be a publicly held business that files for bankruptcy.  Who gets treated how?  Creditors get paid first (for example banks who lent money to the company).  Bond holders are secured creditors, and they come before the stock holders.  Stock owners may lose all or part of the money they invested - they are last to get paid in a bankruptcy.  In fact, usually the stock of a Chapter 7 bankruptcy corporation has no value.

What I want to bring out here is that, in any bankruptcy, creditors stand to lose at least some money. On the other hand, the bankruptcy system is set up to treat creditors as equally and as fairly as possible.  I can tell you that, over the almost 25 years I've been in bankruptcy courts for creditors' meetings.  The creditors have the right to question the debtor and to look over the bankruptcy statement of assets, income, and expense that I've helped prepare for the occasion.  If creditor feel unfairly treated, they have a chance to put forth arguments during that hearing.

Bankruptcy is no win-win OR a lose-lose.  It's a series of compromises.  The idea is for all parties to "win" as much as possible within a bad situation.

One thing continually proves true for me as a debt consolidation lawyer providing bankruptcy services in Indiana: Family law and bankruptcy law are, more often than not, intertwined.  In fact, less than one month ago, I lectured to other Indiana attorneys on this very subject, at the Indiana Continuing Legal Education Forum.

Although the four Mark Zuckerberg bankruptcy law offices are all in Indiana, sometimes it's useful to use bankruptcy court cases from other states as a teaching tool to help me offier Indiana bankruptcy information to clients and readers. This particular case illustrates some of the things I've been writing about wage garnishment, as well as some of the things I teach about divorce, bankruptcy, and child support issues.

Here's what happened:

• An employer received an order to withhold income from G.'s wages.
   
• The employer fired G. after having warned him that a withholding order would mean losing his job.
   
• G. sued, saying the law prohibits employers from firing employees based solely on wage garnishment.
   
• The employer claimed that Missouri is an "employment at will" state, and that he could fire any employee at any time for any reason. As a bankruptcy attorney in Indiana, I need to point out that Indiana is also an "employment at will" state!
  
• The court ruled in favor of G., saying he should not have been fired.  The court based its ruling on the principle that, similar to jury duty, child support is a legal obligation enforced by the courts for the good of society. Therefore, employees should not be terminated just because the employer received child support withholding orders.

The real principle at work here, of course, is getting needed support to children.  G. would obviously be in a better position to maintain his child support payments if he kept his job.

The second "lesson" that I want to point out here is that, under the bankruptcy laws of Indiana, child support obligations cannot be discharged by bankruptcy.  On the other hand, as all the good bankruptcy attorneys who work in the Zuckerberg bankruptcy law offices can attest, bankruptcy can bring relief to individuals like G.  That's because, with the pressure caused by creditor harassment stopped by the automatic stay (that is part of bankruptcy in Indiana), it becomes easier to keep up with child support obligations!

 

Offering payday loan debt help is a big part of my work as a debt consolidation lawyer providing bankruptcy services in Indiana, and I was very glad to read about a Federal Trade Commission crackdown on one payday loan operation (Consumer Bankruptcy News, May 6, 2010).

When people are undergoing financial troubles, one of their biggest concerns, I've found, is the possibility their wages will be garnished.  Under the new bankruptcy laws of Indiana, as is true under federal law, employers must obey court orders to garnish an employee's wages.  The only time a creditor can garnish wages without having a court order is if the creditor is a federal agency.

All of the Anderson, Bloomington, Indianapolis, and Columbus bankruptcy lawyers who work in the Mark Zuckerberg bankruptcy law offices, like myself, are used to helping clients prevent, or at least put a halt to, wage garnishment through bankruptcy's automatic stay.  The automatic stay is a court order that goes into effect as soon as someone files personal bankruptcy in Indiana.

The reason the FTC has charged at least a couple of online payday loan operations with illegally attempting to garnish debtors' wages is that they did not obtain court orders.  The lenders were essentially passing themselves off as having the same collection rights as the government.

After almost twenty five years as an Indiana lawyer for bankruptcy, I've seen my share of abusive payday loan practices.  As a special alert to all my Indiana bankruptcy clients and readers, the payday loan companies named in the FTC suit are Eastbrook, LLC (also doing business as Ecash and GeteCash) and LoanPoint, LLC.

In writing about bankruptcy matters over the past three years, I've made no secret of the fact that I do not like payday lending. While the state of Indiana has put some protections in pace, I wish we would follow the footsteps of the fifteen states who have banned the practice altogether.  While no one likes the thought of bankruptcy, at least bankruptcy offers a chance at a new start.  Payday lending offers nothing but a chance to pay loan interest averaging 391% to 500% a year!

 

This week I've been using my Bankruptcy in Indiana articles to highlight court decisions from other states in order to teach how individual bankruptcy in Indiana works. As a debt consolidation lawyer offering bankruptcy services in Indiana, I've helped tens of thousands of individuals file personal bankruptcy in Indiana.  Despite these large numbers, the fascinating thing is, each situation is a little different from all the others. 

Sometimes the clients who come to me for help (or who turn for help to one of the Anderson, Indianapolis, Bloomington, or Columbus bankruptcy lawyers who work in the Zuckerberg bankruptcy law offices) have made good decisions.  Yet circumstances beyond their control (usually some combination of illness, job loss, and divorce) caused their financial problems to become overwhelming. 

Other clients, even with all good intentions, are suffering the results of poor decisions they've made.  A Chapter 7 bankruptcy case from North Carolina illustrates how the court looks at decisions Chapter 7 debtors make leading up to the time they file bankruptcy.
 

• In 2006, husband and wife R. and K. listed their home for sale after signing a contract for a new home.
   
• For 15 months, R. and K. owned two houses, unable to sell their former residence.
   
• In June 2008, R. and K. sold their first home in a short sale.
   
• A month later, the couple purchased a Disney Vacation timeshare.
   
• In July, 2009, R. and K. purchased two cars at a combined price of almost $70,000.  (Their monthly car payment actually went down as a result of the process.)
   
• R. and K. filed Chapter 7 bankruptcy.
   
• The bankruptcy court rejected their petition.  The reasoning: The couple had shown bad faith in purchasing, on the eve of bankruptcy, two expensive vehicles.  They also did not, the court ruled, need such an expensive home.  R. and K., the court ruled, could afford to repay their creditors if they moved to more affordable housing and drove less expensive cars.
   
• The court recommended that R. and K. convert to a Chapter 13 debt repayment plan bankruptcy.

Whenever I'm helping clients through the bankruptcy process, I help steer them through a long list of "to-do's" that need to be completed before actually filing a bankruptcy petition.  I also explain that there's an equally long list of "not-to-do's". As a long time lawyer for bankruptcy in Indiana, I know one thing:

It can be very important not only to do the right things before bankruptcy in Indiana, but to do them in the right order!

 

After almost twenty-five years as a debt consolidation lawyer offering bankruptcy services in Indiana, I must say some things never change.  The field of bankruptcy law has undergone changes, sure, but the new bankruptcy laws in Indiana are still founded on the same basic principles.

One basic step in the bankruptcy process is pre-petition credit counseling.  The rule is that debtors must seek credit counseling at least 24 hours prior to filing bankruptcy.  (All of the clients who work with me or with my associates the Anderson, Bloomington, Indianapolis, or Columbus bankruptcy lawyers  who work in the Mark Zuckerberg bankruptcy law offices are helped through the credit counseling process in timely fashion.)

Today's case study, which happened in California, shows what can happen when the credit counseling requirement is not completed:

• C. filed Chapter 13 bankruptcy on November 30, 2009.
   
• C. asked for a waiver of the credit counseling, because his bankruptcy was an emergency, meant to stop the foreclosure on his home.
   
• C. explained that, 45 minutes prior to the foreclosure's scheduled time, he'd contacted a credit counseling agency.  He'd been told the counseling session would take at least 45 minutes to complete.  Since C. had no time to wait, he went ahead and filed bankruptcy.
   
• The bankruptcy court turned down C.'s request.  Their reasoning: The imminent foreclosure was an emergency, however, debtors need to show that they requested the counseling session at least five days prior to filing.
   
• C.'s bankruptcy case was not accepted by the court.

Since the purpose behind my blog is to offer bankruptcy information in Indiana, here's the most important piece of information I can possible bring to the attention of my Indiana bankruptcy clients and blog readers: 

Don't wait until it's too late.  Seek legal help at the very first signs of a financial downslide. Allow time for the bankruptcy safety net to work.

C.'s bankruptcy failed for one reason only - he tried so hard to save himself from foreclosure and bankruptcy that he waited too long for bankruptcy to save his home.  As someone who's advised tens of thousands of Hoosier individuals, families and small business owners on how to help their situation through the new bankruptcy laws of Indiana, I know what a crushing - yet probably unnecessary - disappointment this case must have been for C. and his family.

Each of the steps leading up to bankruptcy has a purpose - and each has its proper timing and paperwork that must be submitted. Going through the process in good time and in good order is the way to get relief through bankruptcy in Indiana!

Learning about decisions handed down in bankruptcy courts in other states, I've found, helps my Indiana bankruptcy clients and blog readers better understand how the new bankruptcy laws in Indiana work. I chose today's case study from the Illinois bankruptcy court for two reasons:

1. It involves a car, and a very big part of my work as an Indiana lawyer for bankruptcy, as well as my work as a debt consolidation lawyer, is about keeping cars from being repossessed.

2. It demonstrates bankruptcy's automatic stay in action.
 

Here are the details of the Illinois case:

• I. filed Chapter 13 bankruptcy on May 29, 2009.
   
• At the time, I. owned a car worth $3,700 on which she owed $9,200 to lender AG.
   
• On June 15, AG received notice of I.'s bankruptcy filing.
   
• On June 21, AG repossessed I's car anyway.
   
• For two days, I. could not work and was without her personal possessions that had been inside her car.
   
• The bankruptcy court agreed that the creditor had violated the automatic stay, and ordered AG to pay:
  
          a) Money to I. for her missed work pay

                  b) Money to I. for her frustration and inconvenience

                  c) Punitive damages to I.

                  d) $1,500 in attorney's fees to I's lawyer.

Under the new bankruptcy laws of Indiana, you are allowed to keep your car, provided:

• You file Chapter 13 bankruptcy
   
• You absolutely need the car
   
• You can afford to make the debt repayment plan payments to the lender
   
• You address your problems with the lender before missing any car payments.  

As happened in I's case in Illinois, there are ways that I, along with my colleagues the Anderson, Bloomington, Indianapolis, or Columbus bankruptcy lawyers who work in the Mark Zuckerberg bankruptcy law offices are able to help clients recover their cars even after repossession, but once the car has been taken, matters become much more complicated.

What bankruptcy can do is to enforce the automatic stay, putting a halt on collection efforts and harassment, giving you time to work out a plan of action. As we saw in the Illinois case, the automatic stay really does mean "Stay! Stop collections!  Stop phone calls! Stop repossession efforts!"  The automatic asks creditors: "What don't you understand about the word "STOP!"?